Chapter 5
FIVE
HUGO
I wasn’t looking forward to facing Jewel again. At least I could lie and chalk up my rut to physical exertion. Not because Jewel had straddled me with that insanely sexy look in his eyes.
I had a feeling Jewel would be featuring in my dreams soon, joining Jade and Casey in the list of fantasies that would never become reality.
There was a knock on my door, and I rose from the couch with a groan. I opened it to find a gorgeous, pint-sized beta grinning up at me.
Speaking of insanely sexy. Jade Santos was something else.
“What are you doing here?”
Jade surely had better things to do than show up at my grungy apartment on a Friday night. She had on a short, sparkly dress that implied she had places to be.
“Come on. I’m being forced to attend Golden’s opening tonight, and misery loves company. I need a buddy to endure this with.”
I still didn’t move. “What about Casey?”
She laughed. It was another thing she did that made my heart squeeze. When I’d been kept in the alpha cages under the Blood Well, everything had seemed so hopeless. Casey working as a guard had helped, but then Jade arrived.
She’d been infiltrating the cages to help free Ocean, Laurel’s mate.
Just an undercover job.
I hadn’t remembered what laughter sounded like until she came along. Eyes sparkling with mischief, dancing around and teasing Casey, and laughing.
Jade scoffed, grabbing my arm. “Casey is Jewel’s little cheerleader. I need someone to complain with. Let’s go!”
“You’re not going to leave me alone, are you?”
“Nope!” She popped the P. “You shut this door, I’ll break in through your window.”
I sighed and grabbed my coat. “Fine. But I’m wearing my lazy pants. And I’m going to complain the whole time.”
?
I breathed in the night air and stared at Jade as she dragged me down the street. I still hadn’t figured out why she’d invite me out. She probably felt bad for me. Or responsible for me.
I was pondering which one was worse—being pitied or being mothered—as we walked up to the east entrance. I glanced up at Golden’s bright neon sign. It had a pair of winking eyes, the open one glowing a bright gold.
Y’know, in case you’d missed the fact that Jewel was shoving his middle finger right up the Institute's uptight asshole by opening this place.
People seemed to love his proud defiance. The line was around the block, and I was grateful we got to skip it. I might have just gone home otherwise.
We went through a staff entrance on the side and made our way into the club proper. Jade grinned and bounced on her toes, trying to see the stage. There was already a crowd in here, and she was too short to see much.
“Is he there yet? He hasn’t been able to shut up about his big entrance. I hope we didn’t miss it.”
I glanced at the stage. “No, but there’s a throne.”
Jade turned to me, eyes wide. “No way! Fuck, I have to see this.” She looked around, maybe for something to climb, but there was nothing nearby.
Her nose scrunched in frustration, and I couldn’t help myself.
I ducked down and scooped her onto my shoulder.
She shrieked and wiggled, causing me to almost lose my balance.
It took a second for me to realize she was laughing.
“Wow, so this is what it’s like for tall people,” she said, a hand settling on my head. Goose bumps prickled along my back at the touch. Her thighs were right next to my face, and her faint scent of lavender was everywhere.
She craned her neck toward the front of the room. “Eh, I wouldn’t really call that a throne. Just a fancy chair.”
I chuckled. “You gonna say that to Jewel’s face?”
“What, you think I’m too chicken or something?” She twisted and slipped off my shoulder, landing gracefully on the floor.
“Cuz I’d fight him over it.” She danced on her feet, throwing a couple of punches into the air.
I just stared at her for a moment, getting lost in those beautiful brown eyes.
Something behind me caught her attention, and her face lit up. An irrational surge of jealousy caused me to whip around before I realized it was only Casey. He was waving at us from a booth near the back.
“Come on!” She grabbed my arm, and I followed her through the crowd. As we got closer, I noticed Casey was hunched over slightly, his hands laced together on the table. His eyes kept darting around, as if he wasn’t sure where to look.
“Hey, peaches,” Jade said, planting herself beside him and winding her arm through his. He looked distinctly relieved.
“You okay?” I asked.
He nodded, eyes going wide. “Yes! I’m fine. It’s just… I’ve never been to a place like this before.”
“Do you want to leave?” Jade asked. “It’s not for everyone. It’s super loud and crowded.”
Casey quickly shook his head. “No! I want to be here for Jewel. He’s been so excited about this.”
“He has?” said Jade, feigning surprise. “I hadn’t noticed.”
Casey laughed, more tension leaving his shoulders. Jade grinned and gave him a playful shove.
At that moment, the show started for the evening. I watched with the rest of the room as mist covered the stage, and the lights turned down. We were close to the front of the stage; our booth was just tucked off to the side a bit.
A silence fell over the room, and a single voice boomed over the sound system. “And now, the moment you’ve all been waiting for! Put your hands together for Jewel Fairchild Tate!”
“Here we go,” muttered Jade.
The lights illuminated the striking figure hanging above the crowd. Jewel was being lowered to the ground on a golden bar, head lowered so we couldn’t see his face. He was in thigh-high latex boots, a glittering navy skirt with splits up to his hips, and a blue crop top.
A single, elegant foot slipped onto the stage. Jewel slid onto the chair with the liquid grace of a dancer.
His hooded eyes flicked up, and I felt a jolt. His look made my skin prickle, and for a moment, he looked just like a jungle cat—elegant and deadly.
He grinned and threw a hand into the air with a smile. “Hello, New Oxford!”
His words were met with a swelling of cheers and whistles from the crowd. Time seemed to slow as he stood up to his full height.
The noise in the room swelled with cheering and screaming, the crowd going absolutely wild. He stood still, and I was fixed on his chest rising and falling with his breaths as he waited for the cheering of the crowd to settle.
I swallowed, trying not to think about how every alpha in this room probably wanted to fuck him right now.
Jewel had the kind of beauty and magnetism that would have turned a room full of heads, even if there wasn’t a spotlight on him.
I uncurled my hands and gripped the table, willing my body to chill out.
His smile widened as the applause started to swell again. “Yes, yes, you’re welcome!” he said, giving the room a slow turn to show off a perfectly shaped ass.
I heard a crack in the wooden table as a surge of possessiveness swept over me. I could taste blood in my mouth, and my ears were ringing.
He couldn’t just do that. Prance around on stage practically naked, as if showing everyone he was available. He was my fucking—
A tap me the arm made me flinch. “You okay?”
Jade was peering at me, eyes full of concern. I jerked my arm out of her grip and straightened, trying to regain my composure.
Jewel wasn’t my fucking anything, and never would be.
Jade was still looking at me, so I tried to play it off.
“Completely ridiculous,” I said, and she nodded, rolling her eyes.
I tilted my head toward Casey, whose mouth was hanging open as he stared at the stage with stars in his eyes. Jade gave me an amused smile.
Jewel gave a bow. “You know, it's good to be back home. Thanks for joining me tonight for the opening of Golden. You folks are in for a treat, let me tell you. This is the only nightclub in town where you’ll get an exclusive and uncensored show starring my excessively large… personality!”
He winked at the audience, summoning another round of whistling and catcalls.
Jade and I exchanged another exasperated look. I was clenching my jaw so tight, my teeth were hurting.
“It’s quite a ride, let me tell you,” Jewel continued.
“Sing!” someone from the middle of the crowd shouted.
Jewel laughed, sweeping the cord across the floor as he turned. “Come on, buy me a drink first! But seriously, you don't want to hear me sing.”
“Jewel!”
I tensed as a man rushed for the stage and started to scramble up.
Oh, fuck no.
I was up in an instant, vaulting over a table and diving at the threat. My hand wrapped around the attacker’s foot as I let out a snarl.
Jewel turned and raised an eyebrow as the person crashed to the ground at his feet. I hit the stage, my hip flaring with pain. The man struggled. He was ignoring me, instead focused on Jewel.
“Are we a scent match?” the alpha asked, throwing a bundle at Jewel. My vision bled red as I regained my hold and dragged the man off the stage.
What had he thrown? Was Jewel hurt?
I looked up to find Jewel frozen, a shirt clutched in his manicured nails. He blinked down at the alpha in shock. “My god, we are!”
His hand fluttered over his heart as a sliver of ice pierced mine.
A scent match?
“No way! Really?” The alpha I was holding tried to struggle free.
“No, not really.” Jewel's faux shocked expression morphed to scathing anger as he dropped the shirt onto the ground. A hoarse laugh slipped out of me.
“Are you insane?” Jewel’s lip curled, and he pushed the shirt away with his toe. “In what world is it okay to assault someone with your scent like this? If I wanted to smell diabetic dog piss, I’d go for a walk along Ambleside.”
Jewel smirked as he got a laugh from the crowd.
“Fuck you!” The rejected alpha was struggling, anger contorting his face. “You asked for this, you fucking goldie slut—”
My fist in his face cut off the rest of his tirade.
I was yanked back because, apparently, now was when security decided to appear. The alpha was taken from me.